The Blood Connection appeals for donors as it struggles to maintain supply.
Each year as the holidays approach, The Blood Connection sees an increase in donors. But this year it’s different.
“Usually, people flood in around this time of year. They want to do something in the giving spirit. But it’s been a struggle,” said Mona Amos, Apheresis team leader at the organization’s Easley Donation Center.
“I’ve never seen it like this and I’ve been at The Blood Connection for 14 years,” she added. “Where are the people?”
The Blood Connection needs 800 units a day to supply hospitals but only reached that goal once in the first 10 days of November, said Katie Smithson, partnerships and media coordinator.
By mid-November, the organization fell 900 units behind its goal, she said.
Evidence points to the pandemic as the cause, Amos said.
“A lot of times people say they haven’t been here in a while because of hardships,” she said. “They’re losing jobs, losing their spouse, losing babysitters. Or they’re working double-time to care for their families, to support a sick spouse, to pick up the slack.”
Sadly, several regular donors have passed away as well, she said.
“One man dedicated two hours of his day almost once a week to donate platelets. He passed away a month ago from COVID,” she said. “The week before, another fell ill and passed away.”
Many donors are retirement age — a stage of life when they have time to come in and donate, she said. That’s also the group that’s been hardest hit by the coronavirus.
And like employers everywhere during this time, The Blood Connection has been challenged to find enough staff, Amos said.
“We’re trying to set up blood drives,” she said. “But sometimes there’s no staff to send.”
Still, the need for blood continues.
People are seriously injured in accidents every day and need blood to survive. Others will be diagnosed with cancer and other diseases that require life-saving transfusions.
The organization has been using a variety of approaches to increase donations, Amos said.
Staff has been calling past donors, pleading with them to come in, she said. They’re reaching out through media and by word of mouth too.
The nonprofit has been running recruitment specials as well, offering free T-shirts or extra eGift cards with donation.
“Normally that brings them in,” she said. “But it has not been that successful this year.”
So Amos says The Blood Connection is appealing to everyone during this season of giving who is able to give blood to donate. They just might wind up saving themselves or a loved one, she says.
“No one thinks about that,” she said. “But you can’t make fake blood. We need people to come in. There’s no substitute.”
